SEA SURGFRY

Hokitika Guardian, 5 November 1921, Page 4

SEA SURGFRY

(By a Ship’s Surgeon). The prospect ol haling in undergo an operation in mid-ocean is one which can nowadays he faced with no more trepidation than a similat ordeal on hind. The big modern litter not only has its hospital and its two or more qualified surgeons on hoard, hut even its ii]H*rnting theatre equipped with tin* most, up-to-date method of lighting, insliu incuts, and sterilising nppaiatus as perfect as in any hospital ashore. The hospital and operating theatre ate usually Imilt between decks timidships, whore the movement of the vessel is least noticeable and the vibration from the propeller practically nil. By this means sufficient stability is secured in normal weather, and the most serious and delicate operationshave boon |H*t formed at sea with l.ttlliant IV! suits. When ti very heavy sea is running the surgeon's task is more difficult, lint if the case calls for immediate surgical treatment the commander of tl.e vessel is inhumed, the engines ate stopped, and the hunt is turned and allowed to drift before the wind until the operation is over, so that the movement is reduced lo a minimum.

The surgeons mV assisted hvtlies- - (*i:t I “sick-bay stewards” —frequently cx-noti-eommissioiicd officers of the Royal Army Medical Corps wlm have been trained for the work. If a nurse is requited, she can usually Is- found among the stewardesses, many nl whom are fullv trained nurses.

Some, steamship lines will accept only a fully trained nurse fur the position ,U' stewardess. In the smaller ami older l»»a.ts, where there is probably no proper operating theatre, the ship’s surgeon must use his wits and do the best lie can to ensure the success of the operation with the equipment at his disposal. There is, of course, generally a hospital, hut it is often in the poop ol the vessel, where the motion and vibration make any hut a minor operation a risky, if not an impossible undertaking. In that case, if immediate treatment is imperative, the surgeon must either operate in a cabin—a difficult task as il is (Hissihle only lo gel al one side nl a patient in a berth - or have his operating theatre erected in a better position. M'suiv a sorirms opo ration lias uonn successfully performed in a theatre rapidly erected by the ha’sun in one of the alley-ways amidships hv rigging up sails or tarpaulins nround the table and with the sky as a roof. A ship’s surgeon rarely gets through a voyage without having an o|>cra.tiou of .some kind to perform, and although wounds nr broken limbs resulting from accidents supply most of his patients, serious operations, such as that ini appendicitis or trepanning, are not uncommon. There is a freemasonry ol the sea which makes the services of :e ship s surgeon the property of anyone who

needs them. The captain of a liner that picks up a message from a vessel carrying no doctor and needing medical aid will call on his own surgeon to deal with the case.

The patient’s symptoms are wirelessed, and if a prescription by wireless is not enough, or if an operation must be performed, the liner is stopped and kept waiting until the surgeon has done all in his power for the preservation of life. . , . . .